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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25191286">Where the fallen heart goes</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/paralleltales/pseuds/paralleltales'>paralleltales</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>SEVENTEEN (Band)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Royalty, CHAINS NOT IN A KINKY WAY, Chains, Childhood Friends, End of the World, Fallin' Flower, Flowers, Friends to Lovers, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, IN A SYMBOLIC WAY, Isolation, Magic, Platonic Soulmates, Romantic Soulmates, Soulmates, cannot believe i invented that tag, dk can dimension hop, fairy prince junhui, seer wonwoo, tbh there's more ships in here but platonic</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-07-10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-07-10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 08:41:16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,763</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25191286</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/paralleltales/pseuds/paralleltales</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Junhui is the prince of an expansive kingdom. Wonwoo is a seer subject to isolation.</p><p>Their fates entangle with eleven others as they face the end of the world. </p><p>(Or, an interpretation of the Fallin' Flower MV)</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Jeon Wonwoo &amp; Wen Jun Hui | Jun, Jeon Wonwoo/Wen Jun Hui | Jun</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>11</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Where the fallen heart goes</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>i hope you all enjoy &lt;3 seventeen are my ults and fallin' flower is breathtaking</p><p>cw: a brief description of dry drowning towards the end</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1">And as Wen Junhui found out that the world was going to end, the ground fell out under his feet.</p><p class="p1">-</p><p class="p1">When his eyes darted open and the adrenaline rushed his system, Jun found himself plummeting into a field of flowers, in a place where time held no dominion and he felt galaxies away from the familiar.</p><p class="p1">Junhui had lived a comfortable life as the prince of Shǎnyào De Guāngmáng, his childhood blessed by the kingdom’s three suns that never failed to light the way. He would hear of rain and snow, hail and lightning, but dismissed it as the mutterings of the deranged. Those who simply could not understand how lucky they were to live the way they did.</p><p class="p1">But here, Junhui thought, he could smell the aftermath of rain.</p><p class="p1">It had all started with that damned traveler, Seokmin. He had barged into the royal palace one day, claiming that he could hop between dimensions and had knowledge the Wen dynasty could not imagine, all he needed was to speak to the crown prince. The guards had attempted to shoo Seokmin away, but Junhui caught wind of his request and decided to humour him. He should have let them throw him into the imperial prison for disturbing the peace.</p><p class="p1">Seokmin had a warm smile and embraced him as though they had been childhood friends, as opposed to a prince and a mad man. Junhui, in his shock, simply went along with it and instructed the guard to wait on the other side of his chamber.</p><p class="p1">Seconds after the door closed, the young man dropped his cheerful façade and launched into a frantic monologue.</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">“Wen Junhui…” He began.</p><p class="p1">“Prince Junhui.” Junhui had been raised to respect others, and was almost militaristic in his demands for respect from others in turn.</p><p class="p1">“Prince Junhui, then. Listen to me- I beg of you! Look outside of your kingdom for a moment. It’s difficult, isn’t it?”</p><p class="p1">“The kingdom of the shining light is quite formidable.” Junhui couldn’t help himself but smirk, preening his metaphorical feathers.</p><p class="p1">“Don’t get too cocky, your highness,” Seokmin’s worry was clearly escalating. “I’m simply proving a point. It’s difficult to imagine the rest of the world next to your bubble, isn’t it?” Junhui nodded in response.</p><p class="p1">“This world is simply one of many, contained by our dimension. The kingdom of shining light, impressive as it may be, is a drop in the sea that is this container. I have seen these other worlds with my own two eyes, beautiful and terrifying as they may be.”<br/>“Is there a reason for me to believe you? What’s to say you aren’t a well-articulated drunkard?”</p><p class="p1">“Your highness,” Seokmin rolled his eyes. “Are we speaking your language?” Junhui paused in response.</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">No, no they were not. What fucking language were they speaking?</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">“The guards couldn’t understand me, so they feared me. I’m speaking directly to your soul, and you’re replying to mine.” The serene smile returned to the young man’s face. Junhui swallowed hard.</p><p class="p1">“Please continue.”<br/>“Just as our souls can communicate, there are eleven other men I’ve encountered who’s souls are tied to ours. They truly are some fascinating characters; one fell directly from the heavens, and another has petals and thorns sprouting from his skin-”</p><p class="p1">“To the point please.” The prince wanted answers, and he wanted them <em>now</em>.</p><p class="p1">“Our souls are the glue of this dimension, and that glue is falling apart. We’ve been separated for far too long, and we need to unite in order to prevent the worst possible outcome.”</p><p class="p1">Junhui bit his lip, deep in thought. He truly had no choice here- even if he said no and remained a dutiful prince, he’d be complacent in the destruction of his people.</p><p class="p1">“Well then, how do I help?” His heart was leaping out of his chest and somersaulting out the palace garden. That sunny smile blossomed into an ear-to-ear grin, and Seokmin practically pounced on his words.</p><p class="p1">“Just take my hand, and I’ll explain.”</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">When Junhui grasped the outstretched hand, he blacked out.</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">-</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">That brought him back to his current situation. Seokmin had given him a brief as to what he needed to do first.</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">“Where am I?” Junhui had been indignant initially, but the sweet scent of lavender calmed him down ever so slightly.</p><p class="p1">“You have the <em>privilege</em> of being at the centre of our universe, take it all in!” Seokmin strolled peacefully, clearly at ease in their current surroundings.</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">He had to admit, the landscape he found himself in was heart-stopping in its beauty. He had fallen into a circular bed of the most fragrantly perfumed flowers that he had ever encountered, putting even his mother’s well cultivated collection to shame. The breeze that blew past was tinged with their sweetness, and the lighting was seemingly natural. A purple glow that seemed to emanate from everything and everywhere.</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">“We’re looking for three men from the kingdom of the shining light.”</p><p class="p1">“My people!” Junhui slowly felt his body relax.</p><p class="p1">“Well,” Seokmin furrowed his brows. “They were. Two of the men that we’re looking for were trained by your army from the moment they were deemed old enough. Eventually, they came to hate the idea of fighting others, came to loathe themselves for being instruments of death, and rebelled after the younger of the two came of age.” He avoided eye contact with the prince.</p><p class="p1">“I cannot say I blame them. My father hasn’t exactly been a beacon of fairness and peace.” Junhui found himself suddenly confronted by the actions of his family. He had been raised to believe that as a Wen he was untouchable, blessed with intelligence the common people simply didn’t have. His mind came to wonder that if his kingdom had become superior through being further progressed, or if it had been simple brutality.</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">“Their rebellion failed, and they were locked away in this dimension by a witch- cursed to live in a desert chamber. The third was their dear friend, a young scholar in the imperial court. Upon hearing the news he was heartbroken and begged the witch to send him to that desert, believing that he could find and free them. Every time I come to look for a path, I inevitably come across the poor boy. Now that you’re here, we can relieve his burden!” That smile he had come to look forward to reappeared.</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">Junhui zoned out of the situation and tried to collect himself. Seokmin was asking him to look for three people that had committed treason against his inheritance, and he apparently had to work with them to fix this mess. Why should he? These guys had made it clear where they stood in regards to his family and he had no obligation to change their minds. There was no reason for him to involve himself.</p><p class="p1">But in the back of his mind, Junhui knew better. He knew their actions were the result of fear and self preservation, like any other conscripted child. It wasn’t a grand political gesture against him specifically, simply a visceral reaction to circumstances that had scared them.</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">“How exactly will we do that?”<br/>“The curse simply needs a member of the Wen dynasty to lift it. You appearing close enough to the path will illuminate it, and their eternal chains will crumble like sand.”</p><p class="p1">In an instant, Junhui found himself determined to help these companions rewrite destiny, and fight a cruelty that they should never have been subjected to. Seokmin’s honey gaze was dripping on him, clearly aware of his internal conflict.</p><p class="p1">“Just walk south from here,” Seokmin began. “Eventually the flowers will fade to a barren wasteland, and you’ll come across one of the men you’re looking for. His name is Lee Chan, if you’d like to make some polite conversation.” He singsonged. The name had a strange familiarity that Junhui couldn’t quite place, as though he’d been somewhat aware of his existence.</p><p class="p1">“So in an essentially endless desert, you think I’ll come across him in a timely manner?” He tried to reign in his disbelief, but his skepticism cut through regardless.</p><p class="p1">“You won’t need to find him, he’ll find you. He always seems to.” The man who had been a stranger to him mere hours ago flashed him a knowing grin, and Junhui felt some semblance of confidence run through his veins.</p><p class="p1">One foot in front of the other, and eventually he could find his way there.</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">-</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">When Minghao was seven, he met Hoshi. Minghao was a shy, scrawny child faced with one of the brightest people he’d ever met.He remembered being nudged towards him, the instructors that plucked him from his village telling him to get used to having the other around. At the time Hoshi hadn’t been Hoshi, he was Kwon Soonyoung and he was the sun to Minghao’s moon. Far from his home in the kingdom’s countryside, he gave his all to their friendship and received the world in response. Even though Soonyoung was barely a year older than him, he idolized the other, even telling their trainers he wanted to be Soonyoung when he grew up.</p><p class="p1">When Soonyoung turned thirteen, he named himself Hoshi. He explained to the younger that it was a shortened form of ‘tiger’s gaze’. Minghao couldn’t help but think it suited him perfectly. Hoshi loved tigers, and when they were younger he would ramble on to Minghao for hours about how when they were older and got to visit the imperial palace, they would get to pet the tigers. Whenever he pointed out to Hoshi that a tiger could (and probably would) bite their hands off, he would simply laugh and say the tigers would recognise him. It also meant ‘shooting star’ in one of the Eastern dialects, and Hoshi did shine ever so bright.</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">“Minghao?” One late night, or extremely early morning, the older had whispered to him from the top bunk.</p><p class="p1">“Yes?” They had abandoned honorifics years ago- Minghao finding it to hard with his dialect and Hoshi finding it too stiff and awkward.</p><p class="p1">“Why don’t you give yourself a name? Your thirteenth birthday is coming up soon!” The older’s excitement came through even with his voice muffled by the sheets.</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">Minghao paused to process the information. He looked around the tiny room the two had been sharing for almost six years and took a swig of the details. A creaking set of bunk beds with burlap sheets that had been scratching at his skin for months, despite promises that it would wear out eventually. A single set of shelves filled whetstones, resin and rags to maintain weapons, a desk with a few sheets of parchment and an inkwell that had dried up a few weeks ago, after they had completed their lessons for the term. Hidden amongst their pile of clothes sat in the corner were two teddy bears, raggedy and filthy. They were wrapped in Hoshi’s thirteenth birthday robes, as he had insisted that they were far more precious than any spider silk. One bear was white and the other was a cream colour, Hoshi and Minghao’s respectively. A kind-eyed maid gave them to Minghao his first night at the barracks, her heart broken by his crying.</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">“Hao?” Hoshi’s voice snapped him back to reality.</p><p class="p1">“I’ll have to think about it. Names are important, after all.”</p><p class="p1">“Infinitely wise, as always.” Hoshi hummed, then went back to sleep.</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">Infinite. Minghao liked that.</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">After training, as he took a bite out of the mooncake the kitchen staff gave him, Hoshi came up to him.</p><p class="p1">“Have you decided yet?” The older was beaming at Minghao and he nodded vigorously in response.</p><p class="p1">“I’m The8. Eight for infinity, because I’m going to be infinitely talented.” He tried not to let his excitement come through, but Hoshi clearly picked up on it.</p><p class="p1">“Yes, you will. Now get your butt outside, Chan’s waiting on us.” Hoshi grabbed his wrist and he stuffed the rest of the confection in his mouth while bolting from his seat.</p><p class="p1">Minghao could hardly wait to become The8. Minghao was a scared boy, daydreaming about spending his birthday with his family again and taking care of their farm. The8 was a young man ready to grow as a person and serve his country.</p><p class="p1">-</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">Minghao was seventeen when Hoshi asked him if they could run away.</p><p class="p1">“I don’t want to do this.” Ever since that day, they’d have late night conversations to keep themselves sane. This was the first time he’d ever heard the older so vulnerable.</p><p class="p1">“I don’t want to be a soldier. I don’t want to hurt others. I <em>hate</em> that we had our futures decided for us at such a young age and we took it lying down.” Hoshi was on the verge of tears.</p><p class="p1">“We can be the last to do this. If we do our jobs right then our children won’t have to go through this.” Minghao was desperately trying to cling to his view of the world. If Hoshi started to show cracks, Minghao would simply shatter into pieces. His fragments would scatter in the wind.</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">“We won’t have children if we stay here. Barely anyone here will live long enough to think of a family if someone doesn’t stand up to the king.” Minghao was mentally grasping at straws.</p><p class="p1">“What about Dino?” One of the apprentice scholars they had been friends with for years, Lee Chan, had recently branded himself Dino.</p><p class="p1">“Dino is smarter than the two of us put together and multiplied by three. If we run, he will too.” Hoshi was clearly resolute in his decision. Minghao bit his lip in thought.</p><p class="p1">“I’m begging you,” Hoshi continued. “Let’s be Soonyoung and Minghao again. Let’s run away and leave Hoshi and The8 behind.”</p><p class="p1">“We can’t do that.” Minghao truly believed his words. “We left Soonyoung and Minghao behind a long time ago- but we can give Hoshi and The8 a new future.” Hoshi let out a sigh, half relief and half disappointment.</p><p class="p1">“So you’ll come with me?”</p><p class="p1">“We need to plan it well. Let’s wait until I turn eighteen.”</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">And they did. Mapped out escape routes and villages to hide in, stole any leftover food they could find and stashed it away in hidden places they had found. Their secret felt like a ticking time bomb, expanding in Minghao’s chest whenever he was forced to interact with anyone affiliated with the government. The white hot energy would crackle through his veins and leave him fighting to stay on his feet when his whole body was just screaming at him to faint. Hoshi was practically on cloud nine, mentally having taken himself to a period of time where they had already escaped.</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">Neither of them could have predicted how it would turn out.</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">On the morning of Minghao’s eighteenth birthday, he woke up to a searing pain around his wrists and the sounds of Hoshi screaming. It sent chills down his spine and adrenaline kicked in before he even realised what was happening. He thrashed and hissed at the guards, barely seeing anything other than red in the grimy dungeon. Suddenly, a weight on his shoulders knocked him to the floor and a rag covered his nose and mouth.</p><p class="p1">Ice cold water quickly clouded his senses, seeping through the rag and turning his lungs against him. His body was imminently convinced that his lungs were filled with water, and his vision slowly flickered while his mind drifted away, eyes fluttering shut.</p><p class="p1">Yet, he woke up. Against the odds, he had woken up. Grateful and shaken. He woke up to Hoshi by his side, and the younger found himself drifting into his arms for comfort, unable to verbalize any thoughts. A soothing hand stroked at his hair, a familiar voice whispered words he could barely make out as warm tears rolled down his cheeks. They helped thaw him out.</p><p class="p1">Minghao buried his head in the other’s chest, refusing to look up even when Hoshi’s back jerked up and he started shuffling away from a sinister shadow. When Minghao finally found the courage to lift his head, all he saw was a flash of light and heard the ringing of a cackle off of the walls.</p><p class="p1">He immediately found himself chained to Hoshi, in a dusty and dim room. An otherworldly hum consumed the space and all they had to accompany them were two rusted scimitars at arm’s length. An hourglass would appear from time to time, making the two aware of just how much of their life was being drained away.</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">On Minghao’s twenty-third birthday, he prayed for someone to rescue them.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>soz about the formatting ao3 hates me</p><p>come yell at me on twt: jentleluvr</p></blockquote></div></div>
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